State-sponsored lotteries have been in existence since the 1930's. They have become very common in the United States, and can now be found in 38 states. A typical lottery game involves a participant predicting the correct numbers from a drawing. In a given state, the lottery will have authorized retailers located around the state to sell tickets for this drawing. In order to place a bet, a participant must go to the retailer and either fill out a bet slip indicating the numbers they wish to pick, or dictate the numbers to a store clerk who enters them in electronically and prints a bet slip. If the participant chooses a certain number of numbers correctly, then the retailer issues a payment for the bet slip, which is usually in the form of cash, credit card, debit card, check, money order or any other form of payment which may be accepted at a given retailer.
Many problems and shortcomings exist in the present state-sponsored lottery systems. One shortcoming is that a frequent player must fill out a bet slip or dictate numbers to a store clerk every time he or she wishes to place a bet. Furthermore, the physical exchange of some payment mechanism is required for all transactions. Thus, the transaction takes considerable time to be completed being that the numbers must be entered, a payment must be issued, and a ticket must be printed and given to the participant.
Another problem is lack of security in the event of a win because the bet slip has or may become misplaced or stolen. Currently, no system is in place to ensure that a person who turns in a winning ticket is the actual purchaser of that ticket. Likewise, if a person loses a ticket, there is no concrete system in place to ensure that person his or her winnings. There have been many instances of lost lottery tickets in the past. For example, the system currently in place in New York allows the alleged winner to file a claim with the lottery commission. However, current state law dictates that if the ticket is turned in within a year of the claim, whoever turned in the ticket is entitled to the winnings. This is regardless of whether or not they were the purchaser of the ticket. This flaw in the current lottery system opens doors for theft and fraud. In the event of a win, the system places an exorbitant value on a small piece of paper which can easily be lost or misplaced.
Accordingly, there exists the need for an improved electronic lottery/online gaming bet placement and management system and method that facilitates quick and efficient administration of bets and secure management and distribution of winnings. Also, Federal law prohibits government-regulated online betting across state lines. Therefore a need exists to reliably identify an online player as to the state in which he resides and as to his legal age when placing casino-style wagers (such as blackjack, baccarat, etc.) online using the Internet